NC twins meet mother for first time

Daniel Davis gets a hug from his biological mother Denita Maddox Saturday, Sept. 28, 2013, in Elizabeth City, N.C. Maddox had to give Davis and his twin sister Olivia, left, up for adoption 20 years ago and it was the first time they have reunited. (AP Photo/The Daily Advance, Brett A. Clark)

AP

By WILLIAM F. WESTThe Daily Advance of Elizabeth City

Published: Monday, October 14, 2013 at 11:00 a.m.

Last Modified: Monday, October 14, 2013 at 7:10 a.m.

AYDLETT (AP) — Twins Olivia Davis and Daniel Davis blew out the candles on a birthday cake, but this was no ordinary gathering for the two who turned 20.

That was because the two, for the first time in their lives, met their biological mother, Denita Maddox of Elizabeth City.

"Our emotions right now haven't hit us yet," Maddox said at the Sept. 28 gathering, held at her mother's residence in Lower Currituck. "So, I'm overwhelmed."

Daniel Davis was at first speechless, but was all smiles after embracing Maddox in the driveway. "I feel like part of my life is now complete," he said.

Olivia Davis said, "It's one of those days you can't prepare for, but it's great."

Olivia Davis and Daniel Davis had long wanted to know the identity of their biological mother.

Their adoptive father, Earl Davis, spent a few years searching before hiring a private investigator in July. What resulted was Maddox receiving a call from Earl Davis last month.

Maddox said she believed a re-connection with the twins was going to occur someday, but that she thought the time would be after the twins began careers and began having their own children.

"I had no idea it would happen this soon, but when I received the phone call, first, I was in shock," Maddox said, noting that she cried.

Maddox and the twins began conversing with one another via the telephone, text messaging and the social networking site Facebook.

Earl Davis said he had been praying for the re-connection to occur. He gave praise to God.

"It has been an amazing journey," he said. "I didn't think it was going to ever happen."

Maddox, 47, said she is presently taking online classes from the University of Phoenix and is pursuing a bachelor's degree in health administration.

She recalled that, two decades ago, when she gave birth to the twins at Albemarle Hospital, she was neither financially nor mentally ready to raise the two.

She said that she did not know she was carrying any future offspring until two-thirds of the way through her pregnancy. She said that she had not been gaining any weight but that, after passing out while at work, medical personnel conducted a pregnancy test and discovered two heartbeats.

The daughter, after birth, was originally Kenya Barnard, and the son, after birth, was originally Kentral Barnard. The twins' last names were the same as Maddox's maiden name.

Maddox said that, compounding the situation, the twins' father had a job that kept him on the road and that she already had a 21-month-old son. Maddox had the 21-month-old by a different father, who is deceased.

The then-21-month-old, Novian Barnard, today is serving as a petty officer third class in the Navy, aboard the USS Bataan.

Maddox recalled that, two decades ago, she prayed about the situation and that she decided she did not want to struggle with the twins as well as a toddler.

Through the Children's Home Society of North Carolina, Maddox said that she chose from among seven profiles and that her case manager at the time helped her greatly in making sure she found the right family for the twins.

Maddox had kind words for Earl Davis and his wife, Crystal, in raising the twins.

"This is a really loving family and these kids have a really good heart," Maddox said.

Earl Davis, 65, has a commercial cleaning contract with Duke Raleigh Hospital. He previously worked for the N.C. Department of Corrections, in psychiatric nursing.

He said that Olivia Davis and Daniel Davis have been good children. "They know I don't play," he added.

He said that the twins, after graduating from Raleigh Christian Academy, chose to attend Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. Liberty, founded by the late Rev. Jerry Falwell, is the world's largest evangelical Christian university.

Olivia Davis is studying sports management and is minoring in public relations. Daniel Davis is studying youth ministries.

Maddox said that the twins' biological father, Anthony Griffin, 52 and who lives in Atlanta, was unable to attend Saturday's gathering for medical reasons. She said that he will arrange his own get-together with the twins.

Saturday's gathering in Lower Currituck also seemed like a uniting of two families.

Crystal Davis, 52, said that what was occurring Saturday was a blessing because so many adopted children in the world are continuing to search for their biological parents. She said that "I'm just really thankful" that Olivia Davis and Daniel Davis were able to meet Maddox.

Maddox's mother, Lena Tremble, 63, said that she was ecstatic about meeting the twins because "I thought they were lost and I'd never see 'em again."